Immigration Practice News

January 2013 (Vol. 4, No. 2)

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Resolve to Build a Culture of Retention
by Peter Roberts
A
new staff member started today! Despite the
experience that this new person brings, let's not
forget that the person possesses no knowledge
of how we do things at our firm. The new employee
may (or may not) know immigration law and its
underlying procedures, but the way we prioritize and
serve our clients is unique to our firm and we should
convey this information in a welcoming fashion.
Your offer letter may describe the first 90 days as an
"orientation period." After the 90 days are over, you
should provide feedback regarding the employee's
performance—how they handle mistakes, special skills
they contribute, problems you saw them overcome,
etc. In addition, asking their opinion about their
performance and your management skills can help
to resolve minor misunderstandings. But before you
get to the 90-day performance review, make sure
you start the new employee relationship on a footing
that speaks to employee retention—commit to
communicating effectively.
THE FIRST DAY
Remember the amenities. Take your new employee
out to lunch in a nice but relaxed environment. Open
the communication barrier by discussing your clients
and the nuances of your practice. Share a great victory
on a recent case and encourage the feeling of working
with your staff as opposed to them working for you.
Demonstrate that you are invested in the new
employee's success by spending time educating them
on office and computer systems. Present your office
policies and procedures in an organized fashion and
keep all instructional materials on your shared drive
for easy reference and updating. By being more handson in the beginning you will find yourself spending
less time putting out fires due to poor training
methods and focus more time on being a good lawyer.
THE SECOND DAY
On the second day and after, schedule time to
continue discussing clients, upcoming cases, special
challenges, office systems, procedures, and what the
local judges or officers like and dislike. Ask your new
employee to share his or her own "war stories." Show
your support to your staff. During times of stress, the
payoff in strong morale is incalculable.
Describe your expectations of the position that the
new employee is undertaking. Leave nothing to
assumption. In addition, ask s/he to describe their
expectations of the job. Identifying and setting
expectations in the beginning is essential as it will help
gauge the full capacity of the job.
Blame has no room in supervisory parlance. Instead,
redirect your efforts to mutually solve the problem.
AFTER 30 DAYS
Taking time off due to illness is not unusual. However,
watch out for consistent patterns. Does the employee
frequently take off on Mondays? Are they usually
late for work? Are they reliable? Answers to these
questions may suggest disinterest in the job or that
events in their personal life may be too demanding on
the employee's time. Such incidents during the first
30 days are not encouraging. Remember you have
an "orientation period" after which you will decide if
the match will continue. If you meet with the person
about these issues, keep formal notes.
PERFORMANCE
There are many ways to identify performance
problems: projects falling through the cracks, clients
voicing frustration regarding the employee, too many
personal telephone calls, etc. Again, keep notes of such
mistakes or errors and address your concerns in a nonthreatening way. Also, consider whether the employee's
poor performance is a result of poor training on office
procedures, which you might need to address.
COMMUNICATION
Plan A is always to "retrieve" the employee. Follow
Keep lines of communication open within your
up on tasks assigned and provide positive feedback
office. Your new employee should feel comfortable in
when warranted. Maybe a little time off is necessary
communicating when s/he has made a mistake. The
to deal with a domestic situation. Remember your
sooner you know about an error, the more options you
investment—termination should be the last resort.
have to correct the situation. By resolving the situation
in a calm and composed manner, you can make
e Peter Roberts is the Practice Management
ld b t. Advisor with the Law Office Management
your employee feel less apprehensive
shou r
about the incident. Forget
Assistance Program of the Washington State
ion st reso
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the notion of blame.
Bar Association.
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